Tag: live theatre

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#097: Louis Riel @ The Chan Centre

Currently listening to: Cameron Golinsky’s rendition of “Mad World” (kid is brilliant)

Louis Riel

(click on picture for UBC Opera’s Facebook page)

Last evening, I was lucky enough to score a complimentary ticket to UBC Opera’s Western Canada premiere of the Confederation-era historical opera, Louis Riel. Far from being what one usually expects from a traditional opera (à la Mozart/Puccini/Verdi), Louis Riel draws heavily from postmodern influences (think Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring) and is further embellished by the colourful tones of traditional French, Scottish, English, and First Nations musical influences. With a libretto written in English, French, and Cree, the discordant melodies sung in different languages reflects the English Protestant-French Catholic clash during a particularly tumultuous period in Canadian history. As a history geek, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how accurate it was – and how potentially controversial this opera can be. Bringing up some of the darker sides of Canadian history, it forces audiences to consider the bigotry prevalent in both sides in their respective striving for autonomy.  The cast is sublime, and the chorus is energetic in its rousing renditions of battle rallies. You may not walk out of the theatre humming its atonal melodies, but you will leave slightly unsettled, ponderous, and indeed, rather impressed with all the technical aspects of the production.

Louis Riel plays Saturday (Feb 6) at 8 pm, and Sunday (Feb 7) at 2 pm.

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Miscellaneous

#094: Forbidden Broadway @ PAL Theatre

Currently listening to: “Aside” – The Weakerthans

Forbidden Broadway

One and a half hours of madcap Broadway spoofs later, my Saturday is officially made. Under the direction of Ryan Mooney, Fighting Chance Productions did an absolutely phenomenal job of this collection of (in my opinion) musical theatre staples – after all, what’s Broadway if you take yourself too seriously? I was positively howling with laughter at the Les Misérables parody (featuring a positively spacey Cosette and a two-minute summary of the three-hour epic), and the Spamalot segment is…quite something. Broadway personalities are definitely not spared either; Liza Minelli, Barbra Streisand, and Mandy Patinkin all fall under Gerard Alessandrini’s razor wit and perfect rhymes. My only grouse? The lack of a Spring Awakening parody…now that one’s just absolutely hilarious- and dare I say it, catchier than the original…

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Miscellaneous

#089: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels @ Vancouver Playhouse

Currently listening to: “The Banks of the English Bay” – Said the Whale

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

It’s been forever since I’ve done a live theatre review! Yes, I fail at attempting to be a mini-Great White Way report. Having neglected to write about Les Miserables, Rent, Catch Me If You Can, Wicked, and others, I think it’s time for one…

Last night, I finally got around to watching the Vancouver Playhouse’s production of David Yazbek’s Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a rollicking romp of a musical involving con artists, mad scheming, and a match of wits. The delightful jazz-infused musical numbers will have you toe-tapping in no time, and the dance sequences are an absolute pleasure to watch. But what really makes the show is all the colour, the colour, simply popping and shining brightly in unabashed garishness and sheer fun. Accompanied by a libretto dripping liberally of snarkiness and charm, this musical is two hours of unbridled entertainment, the occasional schadenfraude, and laughs galore.

I’d say go see it, but last night was the closing night of the engagement. Have you seen it already? Wanted to see it? Give me your thoughts and opinions on the show! In upcoming news, I will most likely be seeing Forbidden Broadway mid-January, so await a review of that in due time.

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Miscellaneous

#012: The History Boys @ Granville Island Stage

Currently listening to: “Falling Slowly” – Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová


[Best Play, 2006 Tony Awards]

On Friday night, I watched the Arts Club Theatre’s production of Alan Bennett’s Tony Award-winning play, The History Boys. A brilliant and irreverent romp in “anarchy, sex and education”, the story outlines the path of eight British schoolboys as they strive on in their pursuit of getting into Oxford and Cambridge. Taking lessons from Hector, an old, eccentric Literature teacher, and Tom Irwin, a young maverick, they learn to see the world from a different perspective, while turning life on its head and questioning. Questioning preconceived notions, twisting propositions on their heads, challenging suppositions, debating. Daring to speak out and discover themselves. (Or in the words of Rent, “going against the grain/going insane/going mad”.) But that aside, most importantly, a story of the importance of freedom in education – an acknowledgment of the fact that knowledge is ever-growing and ever-changing and nobody ought to be stuffed into little closeted boxes.

There is just so much in this play that tosses you into a rabid intellectual rollercoaster ride. And it is positively delightful. Debate on the Holocaust. Debate on word usage- “put into proportion” vs “put into context”, “racial” vs “racist”, “explained away”, etc. A fantastic scene of improvisation and snark…entirely done en français. Literary quotations abounding. Historical allusions aplenty. It’s all just brilliant. Toss that all together with lots of British sarcasm and wit, and pull it in with historical slides flashing to a marvellously thumping 80s Britpop playlist, and you’ve got one of the most amazing plays on education ever written.

…so I’m definitely watching it again.
I love the movie, but seriously, the play > the movie. Any day.

The History Boys runs at the Granville Island Stage from September 25 – October 25, 2008.

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